So yes I’ve been all about just cooking my own creations and not using cookbooks etc.

2. cooking meals in advance

To be honest this isn’t my favourite strategy because it can make me feel a bit locked in so I don’t do this often.

But there is a place for cooking whole meals ahead of time.

Before Finbar was born I did cook up and freeze a big batch of my baked meatballs, the green version of my meatballs (recipe below) and my simple moussaka (recipe coming soon!). And on the nights I just needed to warm dinner and serve I was thankful to my ‘past’ self.

3. Prepping ingredients

As I mentioned last week, preparing ingredients ahead of time is one of my key strategies for keeping organized.

I love this approach because it makes it so quick and easy to pull together healthy meals while allowing some freedom and variety.

I also find it makes it easier to be spontaneous and cook without recipes. Plus prepped ingredients tend to have a longer shelf life so there’s less waste.

What’s not to love about that?

And you don’t have to spend hours on the weekend to make it work. I’m a huge believer in using the time you’re already in the kitchen more effectively to take the pressure off.

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Green ‘Spaghetti’ & Meatballs

I’m so glad I invested in a spiralizer to make noodles out of veggies. My favourite are these green ‘spaghetti’ from zucchini which work so well with pesto. If you don’t have a spiralizer don’t worry! You can use a vegetable peeler or mandolin to make slices of zucchini more like pappardelle.

@Julie, I’ve got the Gefu Spirelli http://www.amazon.com/GEFU-13460-Spirelli-Spiral-Slicer/dp/B0026RMEK4 which is cheap and about the size of a water glass. And it does the job, as far as I’m concerned. I’m sure there’s better, but my kitchen is *tiny* so storage space (I’m not even considering counter space as there’s so little of it) is precious.

This is great advice! We are always on the go as a family and sometimes dinner prep ends up at the bottom of the list. With 5 hungry mouths, that can cause a lot of stress! I’m definitely going to be following your advice going forward. Thanks for sharing!